Delhi: Woman trying to sell infant for Rs 3.5L caught in decoy operation

NEW DELHI: In a case that indicates an ongoing racket involving trafficking and sale of infants, a woman was caught red handed on Friday, during a decoy operation steered by National Commission for Protection of Child Rights, when she tried to strike a deal to sell a less than a week old baby girl for Rs 3.5 lakh. The child was rescued and sent to a children’s home.
An FIR has been registered at the Paschim Vihar (West) police station under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code and Juvenile Justice Act pertaining to trafficking and inflicting cruelty on a child.
Acting on a tip-off, NCPCR chief Priyank Kanoongo led a decoy operation posing as a customer and presenting himself as the brother of a woman in need of a baby. The Anti Human Trafficking Unit of the Delhi Police was part of the operation.
It is learnt that that during the preliminary interrogation, the accused identified as Priyanka revealed that she works as an agent with a diagnostic centre for the purpose of surrogacy. “Prime facie, the involvement of nursing homes, diagnostic centres, doctors, the agency responsible for issue of birth certificate etc., with the racket involved in trafficking and selling of children including infants, cannot be ruled out,” Kanoongo said. The NCPCR chief said that he was apprehensive that such activities might be taking place at a larger scale in Delhi and therefore the commission will be inquiring into this and taking action.
According to the case details shared by NCPCR, a complaint was received regarding a trafficking racket selling children including infants operated by one Kavya alias Komal in west Delhi area. The commission was informed that she was planning to sell a baby girl who was just about 2- 3 days old.
“Acting on the information we planned a decoy operation. The woman Kavya was contacted on her mobile from a mobile number of an NCPCR official and she said that she was ready to sell the baby girl for an amount of Rs 3.5 lakh. She called us near the Nihal Vihar Sai Baba temple, to see the baby with an advance of Rs 25,000 and told us to pay the remaining amount of Rs 3.25 lakh when the baby is handed over,” Kanoongo shared.
Kanoongo along with two officials from NCPCR reached the spot after informing AHTU (West) about the decoy operation plan. Kanoongo was asked by the woman to reach the Sai Baba temple, Pashim Vihar (West) and she shared the mobile number of one Priyanka and also the details of a Google Pay account. The team of NCPCR and AHTU, Delhi Police reached the spot. Priyanka was contacted on her mobile and she came to the spot after some time with the baby girl. Kanoongo in the disguise of a decoy customer met Priyanka to see the baby. The accused Priyanka asked for an advance of Rs 25,000 and was caught red handed by the police.
“We will be following up on the case, any more arrests made and the investigation with the police on Monday,” Kanoongo added. The FIR (TOI has a copy) records the sequence of the operation as part of Kanoongo’s statement.